The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Hosea 6:3,
"Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge him. As surely as the sun rises, he will appear; he will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth."
The Lord speaks of the judgment he is going to bring on Israel. It will be a misery that is designed to bring them to admitting their guilt, Hosea 5:15. The Lord speaks of a time, following his judgment of the nation, when Israel will "earnestly seek me" in repentance. The first few verses of chapter six provide what might be said by Israel in her contrition before the Lord.
The words of Hosea 6:3 remind me of the certainty of the Lord's visit to his people. The Lord looks for a time when his people will acknowledge him and trust in the certainty of his coming to them, something he had promised them. When Jesus Christ was born, God's Son did come to visit the nation. The Israelites, as a nation, rejected him when he came to them. But to those who did embrace him, he told of another visit he will make to planet earth. I am reminded of what the angels told his followers on the day Jesus Christ left earth to return to heaven, to take his seat at the right hand of God the Father. "Why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven." Acts 1:11.
Paul tells us, "The Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever." 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17. In the last chapter of our Bibles, the Lord tells us, "Behold, I am coming soon!" and "Yes, I am coming soon." Revelation 22:7,20.
As Israel's confession of contrition might include an exhortation to themselves to acknowledge the Lord and trust in his coming to them, I am reminded of the two visits of the Creator to his creation. The first is an historical fact, when Mary bore her infant baby: the Son of God, the lamb of God. The second is a future certainty, a different kind of appearance altogether as Jesus Christ comes to planet earth as the lion of the tribe of Judah, come to take his own. This second appearance is as certain as the first was. What an astonishing day that will be when all existence comes to a standstill before its Creator as he assumes his rightful position over all creation. What a day that will be!
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
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